


Just Fine

by roundaboutCarousel (Merrywetherweather)



Category: Homestuck, MS Paint Adventures
Genre: Anxiety Attacks, Blood, Insomnia, M/M, Meteorstuck, Nightmares, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Child Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Romance, Violence, davekat - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-28
Updated: 2016-12-17
Packaged: 2018-09-02 22:09:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8685232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merrywetherweather/pseuds/roundaboutCarousel
Summary: What I hope to be a long, multi-chapter meteorstuck fic that follows canon events, with the addition of my own, personal headcanons about what else happened on the 3 year voyage between Dave and Karkat.It starts off with Dave not being able to sleep, haunted by bad dreams and an invisible pressure that still lingers on his shoulders. Whenever Karkat tries to help him like it's the most natural thing in the world, the confusion, unexplainable guilt, and frustration seems to seep out of Dave in waves. Basically, it's heavily focused on Dave's struggle with overcoming a past of child abuse and learning to allow people close to him to show that they care about him.





	1. Night Time Fumblings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. This is your captain speaking.  
> AND THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN PILOTING THE FIRST CHAPTER IN FOR A RAD, SEGUE LANDING!  
> KICK IT BARACK!

            “Not that I don’t enjoy your newfound love of sibling bonding time,” Rose took off the headphones Dave had managed to wrestle over her ears, “but I _have_ made plans with Kanaya tonight and I’d rather not be late.”

            Dave sighed, “I told you. We’re callin it Incest Funfest.”

            Rose’s lips twitched up at the corners, but only slightly. She was amused, but it wasn’t going to be enough to get her to stay. “Unfortunately, not even a direct admittance to your Oedipal Complex will be enough to persuade me to stay.”

            Dave closed his laptop. “Right, so you’re off to have a date with your alien girlfriend. Thus, abandoning me in this lonely-ass crevice of the meteor.”

            “Don’t be overdramatic, Dave,” Her cheeks tinted a slight pink, “And she isn’t my girlfriend… yet.”

            “Gotcha. Gal pals. Whatever. Who knew all those years of delving into my psyche and insisting I was into throbbing man schlong was actually just self-projection.”

            She folded her arms over her chest, no longer amused. “You’re purposely trying to antagonize me now. But I’m not going to feed into your theatrics. I’m running late as it is.” She got up and moved towards the doorway of the common room. She paused before she left and turned to him again. “You really should try to become better friends with our Alternian traveling companions. Our hangouts can be fun…” Her sentence trailed off as she struggled to finish her thought, “But it feels a bit seclusionary. Try and be a bit more open.” She gave a small finger wave and then her orange god tier pajamas slipped out of sight.

            Dave picked up the discarded pair of headphones and set them over his ears. He slumped down on his seat, resting his face in folded arms.

            It wasn’t that easy. Rose had been in communication with Kanaya all throughout their session. They had a lot in common, flirting back and forth, trying to irritate each other. The relationship he had with his patron troll had been different.

            Terezi was certainly the coolest troll he’d talked to. It was hard not to like her when she showed so much enthusiasm in his comics. She had good taste. But there was always something about her. Something a little…

            Intimidating.

            When she had talked to him about spider troll, she was different. Nothing had been a game. All the murder jokes she had so easily rolled of the tongue to make him uncomfortable were gone. She seemed less approachable.

            And when his Bro had died, all that seemed to reach a peak. How did he think he could ever talk to her like normal or think they were even close to being relatively similar when her issues felt so much heavier than his? When they met for the first time, she probably couldn’t help not meeting his eyes, but he definitely couldn’t meet hers.

            And apparently Vriska had survived. He had felt a small itch in the back of his mind that said it wasn’t really supposed to go like this. That someone had fucked with the timeline in a way his powers couldn’t. The trolls had said John had poofed in and socked spider bitch in the jaw before Terezi could show her her stabs, effectively saving the day before disappearing again, and, honestly, if that wasn’t the most Egbertian thing Dave ever heard.

            But, it also meant Terezi was now preoccupied with rekindling their relationship and keeping her in line. It didn’t leave a whole lot of room to sneak in and pick their friendship up where their Pesterlogs left off. There was always scheduled meteor activity nights that he could see everyone at, but they were usually Serket-made events and he was discovering he wasn’t much for crowds.

            He preferred his one-on-one sessions with Rose. He was used to that at least. The familiarity of speaking to just one friend at a time on Pesterchum made him feel less anxious.

            His music faded out. It was the last song on this track. He yawned. His laptop said it was two in the morning. He grimaced and captchalogued his equipment, pushing up from the table and heading for the transporter.

            He might as well try for some sleep.

* * *

 

            It was dark. A thick, murky mist spread out around him like a blanket. He took a step and his foot sank into a marshy, black goo. Oily, like the stuff on John’s planet, but thicker and rotten smelling. Both feet suddenly felt the weight of it tugging him down.

            He was up to his ankles when he thought he saw movement somewhere in the goo. A wobbly, gelatinous ripple.

            Then he heard something. Quiet, but approaching hissing noises.

            He was not alone here.

            He was up to his knees when he felt something brush against his shin. It coiled around him and the added weight pulled him down, pressuring him further into the muck. Up to his waist, a serpentine head peeked out from around his back. It flicked out a forked-tongue, a childish taunt. Its eyes rattled it its sockets.

            Flashing colors.

            Pool balls.

            He tried to struggle, but the large beast just continued its ascent upward, twisting around his body and tightening its grip. It moved around his neck, the sludge now up to his chin, and he managed one more breath of chilled air before his head went under.

* * *

 

            Dave woke up with a start and a sharp intake of air. He kicked off his covers and leapt from his bed in a frantic fit to escape whatever weight he could.

            He needed room to breathe.

            He didn’t want anything touching him.

            He looked down at his hand.

            He had instinctually pulled out one of his shitty swords from his sylladex. He panted as his eyes roamed over the blade disapprovingly.

            He didn’t want to look at it.

            Didn’t want to hold it.

            Just wanted to throw it down and walk away.

 _No._ He reminded himself. _I need this. I need this or I’m not safe._

            His breathing was beginning to calm, his heartbeat slowing down, and he realized he was sweating profusely, his back slick, cool, and, his shirt, uncomfortably clinging to his frame.

            Dave made quick work in exchanging it out for a new one. He ran his fingers through his hair to ventilate the excess body heat coming off of his scalp in waves.

            He checked his phone, the bright light of his screen making him wince behind his shades.

            Damn.

            There was just no way he was getting back to sleep.

            Reluctantly, he left his room. He had opted for his god tier pajama bottoms but had forgone the cape and shirt, settling on a tank instead. His skin needed a little breathing room.

            His feet guided him to the kitchen area. Light petered out from inside the room and he paused before entering.

            Someone was already there.

            Dave didn’t really feel like confronting anyone at the moment, but making himself some coffee was a must. It had only been a month since they had started this journey but already he was addicted to it. He didn’t like his dependency on it, but drinking the bitter bean water had become a habit. And following little habits he set for himself tended to help him calm down.

            He felt the muscles in his face tighten before he walked in. He peeked to his right on his way to the cabinets and saw Karkat sitting at the dining table, reading a book and shoving handfuls of troll chips into his maw.

            He paused when Dave walked in, a few stray chips falling and scattering on the floor. He mumbled a curse under his breath, but didn’t make a move to clean them up right away. “Why the hell are you awake right now? Shouldn’t you be ass-up, face down on your sleeping platform?”

            Dave stood on tiptoes to open the cabinet containing the coffee grinds. “Is that how you think humans sleep? I mean, I know you submerge yourself in a giant pea pod filled with slime every night…”

            “It’s a recupercoon,” Karkat was quick to correct him before irritably shoving another handful of junk food into his face. He chewed loudly and Dave half-thought he was doing it to get on his nerves.

            He ignored it and fiddled with the coffee machine, getting out a mug while it brewed. He tapped his fingers impatiently on the counter.

            Karkat swallowed to clear his throat. “Hey, are you alright?”

            “I’m fine.” Dave hated that question. Was he _fine_? What the hell did that even mean really? Was he gonna make it through the day? Or, was he gonna pull himself together enough to not look like shit? And what did it matter to _Karkat_ if he was “fine”?

            “You don’t really look fine.” Karkat worried at his bottom lip. Maybe the guy was actually trying for genuine concern?

            Dave scoffed. He loaded his mug up and then took a sip without thinking about letting it cool. He immediately flinched and dropped the cup. It landed on the floor, splattering shattered pieces of mug and hot coffee all over. “Shit…” he whispered to himself.

            He had gotten down and was starting to pick up broken pieces when Karkat began to reprimand him, “What the fuck are you doing! Drop that right now!”

            Surprised by his outburst, Dave stared at him dumbfounded. “What? Why?”

            Karkat bent down next to him and took his wrists, shaking the pieces out of his hands. He pulled Dave over to the sink and ran the water over his palms. “It’s still too hot to touch! You’re gonna burn yourself! What the fuck are you thinking? Or does your thinkpan just not work at all?”

            Something in his tone struck Dave deeply. He didn’t think he was angry that Karkat was yelling at him or that he had just insulted him. But something he couldn’t really pinpoint was making him feel frustrated. It was in the concern written on Karkat’s face and in the way he didn’t hesitate in taking Dave’s hands to the sink to prevent a burn. This was something foreign. Something he wasn’t used to.

            And he didn’t know how to respond.

            And that seemed to frustrate him more.

            Dave ripped his hands away from Karkat’s grasp and turned off the faucet. “I said _I’m fine_ ,” he reiterated. Karkat’s eyebrows bunched together, confusion clear on his face.

            Dave turned away, stepping over the mess and trying to leave the room. Karkat called out after him, “Where the fuck are you going? Do you expect me to just clean up your mess?”

            Dave didn’t turn around or answer him. He grit his teeth and kept on walking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Throws emotional baggage onto characters I relate to*  
> "Good luck, buddy!"


	2. The Mayor's City on a Hill

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you with weak constitutions, you may want to look away.

            Dave stumbled through the dimly lit hallway. He felt completely wiped. So far, he was already dealing with having little to no sleep, enduring a panic attack thanks to a shitty cryptic dream, and now he was skipping breakfast to avoid more time spent around Karkat and his very much unsolicited concern.

            But he was used to missing meals. It was everything else that just seemed so emotionally draining. He felt his stomach flip and hoped he wasn’t about to blow chunks all over the goddamn hall.

            His head swam and he leaned against the wall for stability. His legs were shaky as he slid himself down into a sitting position, resting with his head between his knees. The ground was teetering and his breathing was irregular.

            It was so dark.

            And his shades only made it worse.

            He itched to take them off so he could see a little better but he didn’t dare remove them. _He’ll be mad._ The irrational thought plagued him. _He’ll be mad if he sees me without them._

            He closed his eyes and tried to focus on adjusting his breathing.

            Bro wasn’t here.

            He was alone.

            Usually, he didn’t mind being so alone. He definitely didn’t want anybody to see him like this. But it was also frightening. To know no one was going to be there to catch him if he found himself falling too hard and unable to pick himself up.

            A light tap on his shoulder startled him. He gasped and scuttled back. The black carapacian that had been left on their meteor by the white Jack knelt hesitantly at his side, arm outstretched. The little guy had never given the rest of the crew a proper name or anything to call him by so everyone had only been referring to him as “The Mayor”, solely based on the inscription on his handmade sash of cables, which he never seemed to take off.

            “Shit, man,” Dave clutched at his chest. He stood up, evening his voice, “I didn’t even hear you saddle up next to me. You just ninja-ed my ass.” _Something Bro would have cold-cocked me for._

            The Mayor gestured for him to lean down and Dave obliged. He put his hand over his forehead. His rigid exoskeleton was cool and provided a little comfort. Dave almost leaned further into the touch, before he caught himself. Unintentionally, he smacked The Mayor’s hand away.

            The Mayor rubbed at his sore palm. Dave frowned, “S-Sorry. I didn’t mean to, um…” His voice trailed off as he failed to find a way to explain himself.

            The Mayor shrugged it off. Apparently, it wasn’t that big of a deal. He pointed from the direction he had come from and waved for Dave to follow him.

            “You have something to show me?” He felt a little undeserving after the stunt he had just pulled.

            The Mayor nodded and started walking. Dave shrugged and followed after him in silence, too tired to even strike up a conversation or begin one of his notoriously and unnecessarily verbose rants. They walked a good distance, before The Mayor stopped and got on all fours. He pulled a grate off of a vent.

            Dave took a step back. “Haha, wow. No. Sorry. I try to avoid the chances of clown run-ins as much as possible, and the vents? The vents are clown turf, my friend.”

            The Mayor scratched his head, confused.

            “You tellin me you haven’t heard ominous honking leaking out of the grates?”

            The Mayor shook his head.

            Dave hummed thoughtfully. “Maybe we frequent different parts of the meteor then.”

            The Mayor capped the vent with the grate and sighed. He walked a little ways ahead down the hall and stopped to turn around to make sure Dave still wanted to follow him.

            “You have an alternate route?”

            The Mayor rolled his eyes but nodded.

            Dave started up after him again. “Sure, I’m down. Take me to your secret hideout. I’m like your little wife. Make me a member of the Midnight Crew.”

            He rolled his eyes again as Dave nervously chattered.

            Eventually, he guided him to a lab that was host to a bunch of giant carpacian monstrosities submerged in green slime and floating in tubes. Behind those, were a row of transportalizers. The room he was guiding Dave to must not have an actual doorway to enter if the only ways to get there were through the vents and here.

            He stepped on the pedestal and it zapped him away. Dave followed after.

            The first thing Dave saw on the other side was the cans, rows and towers of them, stacked and orderly. After the cans, the bright, unnatural color of the chalk beneath them, on the floors and on the walls. Roads, trees, the sky, the occasional squirrel, all of it drawn out to the best of The Mayor’s ability.

            “You made an earth city. That’s… that’s pretty dope. Why?”

            The Mayor tucked a thumb under his sash, posing triumphantly with his title.

            Dave managed a small smile. “Got it. You’re the big man runnin the town.”

            The Mayor pulled down his face scarf to return his smile. From one of the folds of his cloth he pulled out a yellow piece of chalk. He took Dave’s hand and set it down in his palm.

            “Oh, uh,” Dave didn’t really like the idea of taking it. “Yellow’s not really my color.”

            The Mayor shook his head and pointed upwards, towards the wall. He had most of the reachable parts coated in a thick coat of sky blue, but the ceilings were high and it only went up so far.

            “You want me to finish the sky?” Dave conjectured.

            The Mayor nodded enthusiastically.

            Dave looked down at the piece of yellow chalk in his hands. “And this is for the sun, I’m guessing?

            Another happy head bounce.

            Fuck it. Wasn’t like he had anything better planned for the day. And it might help to distract him some from all the shit that had been piling up from the morning. “Well, I can try. Where do you want it exactly?”

            The Mayor pointed up. Dave followed his line of sight.

            “The ceiling, huh? Alright. I got it.” He floated upward. “I’ll have to draw while lying back though. Gonna get chalk dust in my mouth and all over my goddamn knightly jams.”

            The Mayor ignored his complaints and gave him a pleasant thumbs-up before returning to his work down below, which looked to be designing a new recreational park for the little cans to play in.

 

            There was something about lying back that made Dave’s eyes droop. Something in the way the vibrations that travelled down his arm with every stroke and thrummed in his heart that made him feel drowsy. He yawned and reached up only to find his piece of chalk fell short of the ceiling.

            When had he drifted down to the floor? How long had he actually been drawing? Where was The Mayor?

            His third question was answered as a blanket fell over his torso, The Mayor having scurried over to cover his tucked out worker. Dave’s eyes were starting to thin to slits. He was too exhausted to say much aside from an awkwardly mumbled, “Oh, um, thanks.”

            The last thing he saw before he passed out was The Mayor scurrying over to continue filling in a little green tree.

* * *

 

            There was something weighing him down. He was on his knees, slumped, unable to get up. A stinging sensation in his chest that started out numb slowly crept into a roaring, burning ache.

            He wanted to scream, but he couldn’t manage a sound.

            He looked down.

            Something shiny, heavy and wet protruded from his chest.

            _Swords. So many swords._

            His own blood pooled forth from the wound, trickling down their lengths and dripping onto the ground.

            He opened his mouth to call for help, but nothing came again. The only noise came from the swords jostling against each other.

            Another blade slid through him, widening the wound. He jolted forward but remained kneeling. The person shoving them in pulled the new blade back a little, making sure it was securely in place.

            _Bro._

            The dark gleam of his shades made Dave flinch and he watched with mounting hysteria as Bro pulled out another sword from his strife deck. He grabbed Dave’s hair and pulled up, making him sit up straight for the next blow.

            In one fell move, he dug the blade through his heart.

* * *

 

            There was a clamor in Dave’s head as he regained consciousness. Slowly, it dawned on him that the noise wasn’t just coming from inside.

            He stood, panting, in a battle ready stance, Caledscratch in both hands, The Mayor’s blanket, discarded.

            The Mayor was sitting in front of him, thrown back and clutching at his chest. Dave startled and dropped his sword. “Oh, God. Oh, man. No.”

            He had lashed out at him.

            The Mayor pulled his hand away and Dave was relieved to not see any unforgiving red. Only the cloth had been sliced.

            He fell to his knees. “I’m sorry. Shit. I’m so sorry.” The Mayor waved his hands about, trying to shoo away his apologies, but it wasn’t enough. Dave couldn’t stop them from pouring forth.

            Unable to quell Dave’s tirade of regret, The Mayor shook his head and ran off for the transportalizer. He disappeared, leaving Dave alone.

            Dave followed suit, recaptchaloguing Caledscratch and rushing for the exit. He just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.

            He needed to be alone.

            He needed to lock himself away in his room.

            Maybe for a good long while.

            Maybe until the nightmares went away.

            Or maybe just until he could control his emotions enough to not be a danger to the people around him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Bangs my fists on a table* ANGST! ANGST! ANGST! ANGST!


	3. Drastic Measures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello naughty children. it's character interaction time.

Karkat clenched and unclenched his fist in time with the ticks coming from the wall clock in his respite block. He was staring at a video on GrubTube. Unable to sleep, yet again, he had somehow ended up in one of the rather obscure corners of the internet.

The content was meaningless drivel. He scrolled right passed it and went straight for the comments sections instead. Reading poorly worded arguments wasn’t particularly enjoyable, but it helped him direct his anger somewhere after Dave had been so rude to him in the meal block.

He sighed and pulled his face down with his hands.

This was so stupid.

He was being stupid.

Why had he felt the need to stick his nasal stub where it didn’t belong? It was painfully obvious by Dave’s reaction that his concern wasn’t needed, just like his piss poor attempt at leadership during his and his friends’ SGRUB session.

In that little moment, he was somehow able to relive all his shortcomings. He set his head down on his keyboard and rubbed his face across it, groaning as his husktop flashed him a text box about sticky keys.

With his face pressed down, he could feel a slight vibration coming from the ground. It grew in spurts. He could tell someone was darting down the hall. They passed his room and then paused. Karkat lifted his head and watched his door expectantly.

No one knocked or entered.

He squinted. “What the hell-?” Loud metallic clattering filled his room and he got to his feet, petrified.

They were crawling through the vents near his room.

“Oh shit!” He pulled out his sickle and eyed the most likely point of entry, near his bed. The grate rattled and fell into the room, a little black foot sticking out as it kicked its way to freedom. The Mayor shimmied into his block.

Karkat quickly withdrew his sickle and fell to his knees. “Oh my Empress. No, honestly, what the fuck was all _that_ about? I thought you were the clown!”

The Mayor shook his head fervently and grabbed his hand.

The small carpacian whisked him out of the block. Although he made no attempt to pull out of his grasp, Karkat still complained, “Are you out of your goddamn mind?! Where the fuck are you taking me, you wannabe elected official! I don’t want to play pretend wiggler games with you!”

The Mayor waved his unoccupied hand above his head, obviously displeased with Karkat’s barbs, but paying it very little attention. He pulled him over to a steep staircase.

“Oh, no no no!” Karkat finally tugged back. “Slow down, or we’ll fall!” Images of Sollux’s mangled mouth and his own bruised body after taking a spill not too long ago flashed in his head.

The Mayor let go of his hand but still urged him on, taking to the stairs on his own. Karkat watched him at the top of the steps with slight hesitation. It went so far down, the landing at the bottom was seemingly a black void. He reached a decision and continued after. “Fuck it!”

At the bottom, a hand reached out and took his once again, startling him. He let out a small shriek and heard The Mayor’s amused chortle. Before he could reprimand him, he was being pulled forward again. Respite block doors flew by until The Mayor finally came to an abrupt stop.

Karkat panted as he observed their destination. The door they were standing in front of had a crude drawing taped to the front, one of the characters from Dave’s ridiculous webcomic. Karkat took a step back when The Mayor tried to step forward. The Mayor turned back to him, questioning his hesitation.

“Why did you bring me _here?_ ” Karkat asked. His eyes grew wide with the realization that this might be an emergency. “Is Dave hurt? Is he okay?”

Instead of giving him an answer, The Mayor knocked on the respite block door. They waited in tense silence for a response.

A few seconds passed before the door slid back and Dave stared out at them from the doorframe. He looked just as confused as Karkat felt.

There didn’t appear to be anything wrong with him physically, aside from heavy eye bags peeking out from under his shades.

Karkat looked to The Mayor for some sort of sign. The Mayor just gestured to Dave. “You lost me, man,” Karkat ran his fingers through his hair. “Although, I’m pretty sure I was never actually following you too well to start.”

“You came to my room to wake me up at the butt crack of dawn and you aren’t even sure why?” Dave quipped.

Karkat rolled his eyes. “Oh _please!_ As if you’ve slept at all. You look exhausted.”

Dave leaned against the entryway, arms folded, defensive. “I slept some.”

“Clearly not enough.” Karkat gave The Mayor a quick glance for help. He was just standing there between them, watching their interaction. “Seriously, why am I here?”

Dave sighed, “Look, maybe he’s just worried because we had a little accident earlier.” Dave addressed The Mayor, “I’m sorry, bro. It won’t happen again so there’s really no need to drag Karkat into all this. This situation doesn’t call for _that_ level of drama.”

“ _Excuse me? I am not dramatic!_ ”

“I don’t think you understand how ironic you just were. You literally emphasized every word in that sentence.”

The Mayor waved his hands, distracting the boys from what might have been a long and meaningless argument. They both turned to watch as he pointed to each of them. First Karkat, then Dave. He made piece signs with his index and middle fingers and then pressed their fingertips together, creating a diamond shape.

Karkat pulled a horrified expression and yelled, scandalized, “No way! Absolutely not! No way in hell!” Where had he even learned about moiraillegiances? Did he actually know what it entailed? Was Rose leaving all of Karkat’s borrowed, sordid literature lying around for just anyone to read?

“What? What did he say?”

“He didn’t say anything, dipshit! But he just made some very graphic pale gestures that basically implied we should jam.”

“I thought you weren’t interested in my godly sciences.”

“Not that kind of jam! A _feelings_ jam!” Karkat felt his face heat up. “Like moirails do.”

Dave recoiled. “Oh, God. That’s quadrant talk. I am _so_ not interested. Actually, I think I’ll just check out altogether. Seeya!”

The Mayor grabbed Dave’s pant leg, stopping him in his tracks. He stared up at him determinedly.

“That’s not gonna work, dude. These shades protect me from puppy dog eyes.”

The Mayor rubbed at his stomach and pulled up some of his tattered rags, revealing a more jaggedly cut piece.

Dave winced.

He immediately changed his tune, “Alright! I get it! We shoot the shit and then he leaves! No more, no less. Satisfied?”

The Mayor nodded happily.

Karkat scoffed, “Hold the telecomunicator device. I still haven’t agreed to this ‘one-night pale stand’ with someone who clearly lacks the emotional depth needed to parse through basic-”

“Karkat… Just get in the room. The sooner we make this happen the sooner we can all retire to our respective corners of the meteor and then we’ll never have to bother each other ever again.”

“Right, so I guess we’ll just reunite in three years, since just seeing your face seems to bothers me,” Karkat huffed as he walked past Dave and entered his room. The Mayor tried to follow them in. Karkat stopped him in his tracks. “Sorry, but here’s where I’m drawing the line. Some people are fine with public displays of paleness and I’m just not one of them. You do your carpacian thing where you crawl around the vents and drag everyone into everyone else’s business and I’ll do my troll thing where I remain the romance master I am _in private_.”

“Romance master,” Dave mumbled to himself, “Romaster.”

The Mayor shrugged, seemingly satisfied now that his goal was accomplished. He wandered down the hall and out of sight.

Dave closed the door behind them as they walked farther into the block. Karkat’s first impression of Dave’s room was… messy. His bed wasn’t made. He had crappy art hanging on his walls. A Midnight Crew Poster, which Karkat thought wasn’t completely tasteless, sloppily hanging above a mixing table.

But it was a sort of organized chaos. There were piles of things and everything definitely had a place, even if nothing was put away properly. Dave just seemed to like having his shit on display, or, at least, in reaching distance.

“You gonna take a seat or what?” Dave said as he took the only visible chair in the room. Karkat just sat down on the reclining platform instead.

“I’m going to skip formalities and just get to the point-”

“Skipping foreplay is a sin, Karkat.”

Karkat growled but ignored him, continuing, “What exactly happened between you and The Mayor earlier?”

Dave’s eyebrows furrowed. “He enlisted me to help him build a town made out of cans.”

“And?” Karkat prompted further.

“And I drew a sky for all the can citizens to ogle whenever they’re feeling down.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it! Stop beating around the bush!”

“Are pale sessions supposed to be this loud and interrogative?”

“No, but it’s… it’s kind of hard to feel pale for you when we haven’t even known each other very long. Actual moirails are even closer than your human best bros. There’s a deep level of trust and understanding. We’ve got none of that. It’s also hard when you aren’t being very forthright.”

“How exactly am I supposed to comply in this situation? The Mayor just guilted me into a therapy session with someone who clearly has his own issues that need sorting out.”

“Oh, wow! Like I’m not painfully aware of all of my shortcomings!” Karkat shook his head. “Wait, this isn’t about me. Stop misdirecting the conversation.”

Dave slumped in his chair. “Look, sometimes things aren’t easy to talk about. We should just leave it at that.”

“Do you even know who you’re talking to? I usually end up regretting every word that comes out of my mouth. I’m fully aware how fucked up shit gets, but talking about it might help.”

Dave sighed and then clammed up. He didn’t seem to be budging. It was like Karkat was up against a brick wall.

His eyes darted around the room as a silence grew between them. They settled on the bed. “Would you be more comfortable if you were lying on your platform? Piles tend to be the usual staple for jams, but this would be just as comforting for humans, right?” He patted the spot next to him.

Dave looked at him, uninspired. “Did you really just invite me into bed with you?”

“Uh… yes? Was I not speaking English just now?” Whatever Dave was trying to convey was getting lost in a forest of cultural differences.

He sighed but stood up. “Whatever.” and plopped himself sideways on the bed, arms folded behind his head. “Let’s go, Dr. Vantas, PHD. Ask me about my childhood or something.”

Karkat glared at him. “I asked you what happened with The Mayor.”

Dave’s mouth was a thin line. He didn’t respond.

“Dave?”

“I had a nightmare.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so i know pale romance cant just be forced and they arent actuallytrying to do that. the mayor has limited knowledge about troll romance and he's operating under the idea that he wants to help dave but he doesnt really have a better way to explain karkat's involvement other than describing it as something pale. so neither of them are really trying for a pale relationship here, just something pale-like.  
> thanks for all the comments guys! idk if all of you know this but this fic is actually part of one of my finals and audience participation of fanfics is the general focus so i really appreciate all the positive things people have been saying!


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